Police find knife in car during routine registration check

Police found a large kitchen knife in a Perth man’s car after stopping it for a routine registration check on a local housing estate.

It was was described as a “long-bladed, black-handled, kitchen-type knife,”Perth Sheriff Court was told.

It was recovered from the driver’s door pocket, explained depute fiscal Michael Sweeney after computer checks revealed there was no insurance cover for the vehicle.

Forty-eight-year-old James Eddie, of Kenmore Terrace, was spared jail after he admitted being in possession of the weapon in Letham’s Tweedsmuir Road on March 10, 2019.

Instead, he will have to carry out 160 hours of unpaid work in the next six months and be supervised for a year.

He also had seven penalty points imposed on his licence for using the vehicle without insurance.

The court was told the accused “came to the attention of the police”on mobile patrol around 12.30am.

After speaking to him, the vehicle was searched and the blade was recovered.

Solicitor Linda Clark said her client’s mental health had deteriorated following the death of his mother and several other“close family members.”

As a result he had lost his job and started to gamble online to pay his rent.

“He also started using amphetamines and life seemed to tumble out of control for him,”explained the lawyer.

New neighbours had moved in and their teenager had been “poking fun”at him.

Matters, however, had now “calmed down somewhat.”

Thankfully he had never been challenged and he never had any occasion to use the weapon.

She added:“The knife had been in the car for some time and had been forgotten about.”

Eddie was now getting help to“come off amphetamines” and was now substance free and he was being assisted with his debt difficulties.

Because of his money problems at the time, he hadn’t renewed his insurance when the renewal notice had come in.